End killing of Shiites now, HURIWA tells government

A pro-democracy and non-governmental organisation (NGO), Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has asked the Federal Government to end without further delay the frequent attacks by security forces of members of the Shiites Islamic Movement in parts of Northern Nigeria.

Besides, the Federal Government has been asked to investigate the allegation that Southern Kaduna indigenes are being killed by armed Fulani mercenaries to chase the survivors out of their ancestral land because of the recent findings of huge gold deposits and to deny them their rightful claims to big compensation package.

In a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko and the National Media Affairs Director, Miss Zainab Yusuf, HURIWA accused the Federal government of systematic but illegal clampdown on the members of the Shiites group who, in any case, are entitled to the full enjoyment of all the fundamental rights’ provisions contained in the Nigerian Constitution and global human rights laws.

Terming the actions of the security forces especially armed police against the Shiite members as unconstitutional persecution of Nigerians, the body has also called for the release from detention of Sheikh Ibrahim El- Zakzaky or his immediate prosecution in the competent court of law because the indefinite detention without trial of a citizen amounts to a grave violation of the fundamental human rights of such a citizen.

“We condemn in no uncertain term, the continuous confrontation targeting members of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN) by security forces in which lethal weapons are allegedly deployed resulting in the extra-judicial killings of Nigerian citizens which is a direct violation of Section 33 (1) of the Constitution which provides thus: ‘Every person has a right to life, and no one shall be deprived intentionally of his life, save in execution of the sentence of a court in respect of a criminal offence of which he has been found guilty in Nigeria.”

According to HURIWA, the attack by the police in Kano of members of Shiites was absolutely unlawful and primitive just as the Rights group called for an independent investigation into the incident and prosecution of the armed police indicted over the killings.